Deus ex Machina presents the IN DUST WE TRUST Festival
The Deus family descends on the Johnson Valley, California for a one of a kind Dirt Bike, Art, Music and Film Festival
They arrive to this desert from around the world. Friends and family united over the bond of riding. Over the years, the Minchinton family’s Mad Max-style compound in the Johnson Valley desert has become something of a legend, but most of the 100+ campers arriving here had yet to experience it for themselves. They would not be disappointed.
A truckload of cold Olympia beer, crafted Madre Mezcal and mouth watering BBQ from Café 247 is there to welcome them as they unload bikes and get settled. A place this unique takes a moment to absorb. Deus maestro Dustin Humphrey and brand ambassador Forrest Minchinton have been dreaming of this day for years. All those fireside nights out here during shoots for films like Painted in Dust and Death Rides A Horse… even those couldn’t do it justice. But now that the concept of the “Swank Rally” had been proven around the world at prior Deus festivals, it was time to let loose up on the WMW ranch.
What’s a Swank Rally, you ask? The race was the brainchild of the Deus Italian brothers, who were on hand to enjoy it here this weekend. The concept is simple. You hit a stopwatch, race a 3.2 mile course, and see who gets the best time. Forrest, who grew up riding these trails, laid out the course and would, of course, be the man to beat. But with experienced desert riders like Micah Davis, Allen Brown, Jason Haines and Lyon Herron on hand, it was going to be serious business.
In the vintage bike division, it became clear fairly quickly that the guys to beat were going to be Micah Davis, Ayrton Sieja and Nick LaPaglia. Each threw down laps under the 5-minute mark. But in the end it was LaPaglia on his 1972 CZ 250M that claimed the fastest lap. “This is the style of riding I grew up on,” said Nick, “so this is just fun for me.”
With temperatures rising in the desert sun, it was time for the Open Class races. While the rally was enjoyed by beginners and intermediate riders, a crew of seasoned desert riders were putting on course in how it’s done right. Forrest Minchinton was right near the top, but he bowed out because he had designed the course. Micah Davis set the bar high on a Deus x custom Yamaha 450 (more on that bike to come), only to be taken out by Murrieta’s Nick LaPaglia, who seemed so comfortable with his 4:52 course record he opted out of his second ride. Then Huntington Beach rider Connor Steel turned up with the best lap of the day, a time of 4:47. For the last ride of the rally, LaPaglia put his helmet back on, pushed his bike to the starting line, and disappeared into a cloud of dust. When he ripped back into the starting box, his time was a blistering 4:42, leaving him the winner of both divisions of the inaugural US Deus Swank Rally.
Special thanks to our sponsors of the event - Yamaha Motorcycles USA, Olympia Beer, FMF, GoPro, Bell, Biltwell, Acerbis, Motocutz, Metzeler USA, BK inc, Minchinton Surfboards, Zing inc.
Images by Harry Mark, Monti Smith, Niki Cram, Caleb Keller, Fernando O. Cepeda, Jason No, Gabriel Herrera
